26 February 2024

Spring Ski Tour, Austria

Note the links will be updated as the tour pages are released

The time had come around once more to be heading off to the Alps for a few days in the mountains with skis. Bryon and I had discussed where to go and settled on an area South of Innsbruck with access to the Brenner and Obernberg valleys. For the second time Steph would come with us, as she wanted to expand upon the days in the new year.
The arrangement was for all of us to meet up on Sunday night in Ifold and make our outward journey on Monday morning via an overnight in Merlebach Saarbruck at a refreshed F1. Then on the next day to an area south of Innsbruck part way up the Brenner Valley road where I had booked an apartment in the village of Trins.
Once there we would do day tours making the most of the local routes, and travelling to nearby centres
We were booked on the noon ferry to Dunkirk, however the ferry was an hour late, and we had to hang around in the dispersal point with the few other vehicles on our ferry. It was loaded in the usual time and we headed straight for the restaurant.
Then time for lunch - fish and chips as this looked the better option on the counter - all the menu was fixed, I guess, as it never seems to change. However as we left the safety of the port we realised why the ferry had been late - there was a big swell under a strong wind. Luckily we had completed our meal before it got too bad.... part of the way across the sick bags were being dispensed - not required at our table, but the toilets rapidly became "NoGo" areas.
From Dunkerque driving across to Lille then along to Luxembourg and down to Metz - a long day with the ferry delay and we arrived at the F1 around 10pm having stopped for food at a Belgian motorway stop.
There was parkign behind the hotel, however this was full as was some beside it so we ended up parking down a side street around the corner.
I expected a machine on the wall to give us a code number, but this was out of action - so we had to page the reception and get someone to come and process us and hand over a code. We had the usual bunk along one wall with two singles under and a shower/ basin/ toilet unit in the corner. We only saw the outside int he following morning
Next day after a reduced buffet breakfast (the coffee machine broke part way through as well!), we made our way across to Germany and along the Bodensee to Budenz, picking up the Austrian autoroute and motorway pass on the way.
We forgot to get off the Brenner motorway before the toll station and ended up paying the full price.>br />
We arrived at Trins a little early, so off to find a supermarket in the village, then up to the end of the valley to investigate options before dropping down to look for our apartment - a fine old house - tired but big and very suitable for us, with lots of space, just complex to find down a narrow road with the parking in garages down the road.
The apartment was on the top floor but accessed by one staircase. It had three bedrooms, a separate lounge and a kitchen/ diner with two bathrooms - plenty of room for us to get lost in.
  • Pfriemeskopfl - Up beside the Mutters ski piste to the Alm and Pfriemeskopfl
  • Waldrasterjochl - Ascending beside the Mieders ski area then onward to the Jochl
  • Blaser - Through the woods behind the apartment and through the meadows above
  • Grubenkopf  - A repeat visit to a well travelled peak
  • Trunahutte - Up the other side if the valley to the apartment on the way to Egger Berg
  • Sattelberg - A repeat visit to another well travelled peak. 
After 6 nights in Trins we moved north and west to Sellrain on the road to Kuhtai for a further 4 nights Staying in an apartment above the village.
Again the apartment was on the top floor accessed by a door in the side with a reception hall and laundry/ drying room. Upstairs were a huge lounge/ kitchen diner, with two bedrooms and a bathroom bath and shower.
For the final two nights we moved (again, since the Sellrain apartment was booked up) to Axams - just down the valley towards Innsbruck. Getting to it was difficult as it had a narrow shared drive. Once there we could park outside, and the key (a card in this case) was in a lock box beside the front door.
A smaller apartment than the other two, as well as being more expensive (due to the closeness of the Axamer Lizum ski area). This one had a small kitchen diner with a sofa, and two bedrooms (and a large hall)

The return journey started on Sunday with rain and wind forecast and would be a close repeat of the outward journey, other than going over Fernpass (this would avoid having to buy an extension to the Austrian motorway vignette).
We passed the Ehrenberg castle and on another day we would stop for an explore - two castles with a record length rope bridge between!  Then via the German autobahns, across to France then up to Merlebach Saarbruck. We stayed at the same F1 in on the outward journey.
We arrived around 4pm - far earlier than we had ever before and too early for dinner, luckily the six nations rugby was on the tv, and this occupied us (or maybe just me) until we could leave to find some food.
We walked down to a pizza restaurant - L'original by pizza d’or - and were the first customers of the evening. Pizzas all around followed by Tiramisu rounded the evening off.
The next day we completed the journey, first through the derelict coal mining area up to Saarbrucken then across Luxembourg and Belgium to Lille and Dunkirk.
We were able to get on the ferry before the one we were booked on, and so only had a 2 hour wait (having arrived at the point where there was a break in the schedule).
The ferry was on schedule and we had an early dinner (curry this time) and a relatively smooth crossing - especially after last time.
Back in Ifold before 8pm (GMT).
A really full trip with lots of varied conditions and different days out. We only had one day where we had a limited palette to work with (and we called it a rest day!), starting with a bright cold day, they gradually got cloudier and warmer and, after some welcome snow, turned even more variable - with some good skiing mixed with heavier snow.
We surpassed 118 Km and 8900m on our tours this year, which was also at the top of our statistics.